Harden, Howard must get act together

Two scenes stayed with me on the day the Rockets cruelly cast aside Kevin McHale.

I've constantly played the images back in my mind as the involved parties swore by their personal truths and the Rockets insisted there's no divide.

The views:

James Harden, headphones on, blasting away all the noise and locking out the prying media pregame Wednesday inside the Rockets' spacious locker room.

Then Dwight Howard postgame, knees heavily wrapped and sitting alone, laughing while staring at his phone 15 hours after McHale's firing, making child-like goofy faces at the screen as reporters again waited for Harden to speak.

The only two Rockets who matter on opposing sides of the same room.

Harden and Howard in their own untouchable worlds, with championship rings still missing from their multimillion-dollar fingers and McHale's ghost suddenly the main chapter of their disjointed Houston story.

Neither held a knife.

More Information

Rockets update

Saturday: Knicks 107, Rockets 102.

Record: 5-9.

Wednesday: Memphis at Toyota Center, 7 p.m.

TV/radio: Root; 790 AM, 850 AM (Spanish).

Read More

Owner Leslie Alexander and general manager Daryl Morey were left to wash away the blood. But everything that happens to these Rockets is always done in the name of Harden and Howard. And now they have a coach's body on their linked résumés just 11 games into their third season as a supposed superstar duo.

Is this thing ever going to work?

I question it more than ever.

If you say Western Conference finals, I now say 3-1 Los Angeles and total Clippers collapse in the semifinals.

If you say second to MVP Steph Curry, I point to career lows for Harden in field-goal, 3-point percentage and defensive effort entering Saturday, following a self-obsessed offseason bacchanal.

If you say Howard has actually brought it this year, I show his fewest average field-goal attempts and points since his rookie season when he was 19, then display a 29-year-old body that's the only thing about the center that acts older than his age.

Duo must work as one

If you say it's still only November and 14 games means nothing in a league that really doesn't start until Christmas, well, tell that to McHale.

J.B. Bickerstaff was gifted a used dry-erase board and packet of Super Glue on Wednesday morning, right after his longtime friend, colleague and mentor was axed. A day later, Bickerstaff knew exactly where the broken Rockets had to restart their fire.

Harden and Howard.

Making the two finally work as one. Discovering the Rockets' unique version of the Warriors, Spurs or Cavaliers in the strength emanating from both, instead of a distracted team that started its new Pursuit 5-8 and began its 2015-16 campaign as the most frustrating and least invested squad in the league.

"It's the most important thing," Bickerstaff said. "If they're not on the same page between those lines, we don't get to where we need to go. … If it wasn't proven, then we wouldn't worry about it.

"I go back to Golden State last year. You can see the camaraderie. … San Antonio: You never hear problems about their guys, their locker room. So we know it works. And we are trying to get to that level."

Ask Harden and Howard about their two-plus year marriage and they always say it's a love in progress. By acknowledging that, they're also saying they haven't truly committed yet.

"When you have two guys who have been at the top, sometimes it may be hard for them to come together," said Howard, who can become a free agent next season. "But we both understand that we need each other. And in order for us to win, we've got to be able to lead together, especially with this unit. They need to see us on the same page."

Chemistry is priceless

Harden and Howard don't dislike each other. They definitely don't hate each other. They ate breakfast together the morning after McHale was fired, then later joked and messed around while shooting free throws on Toyota Center's practice court. But Harden and Howard, one of the NBA's few remaining superpower groups, also aren't close friends.

It's just a sign of the times in the distant modern game. But when McHale's kicked out of the arena so early on, it's a reminder that chemistry remains the most priceless asset in the Association.

"Dwight has a strong personality and I do myself," Harden said. "The more we're meshing together, the better it's going to be for our team."

Critics insist Howard will never get it, directly citing his 12 NBA years as proof. Even when his body's right and his game ignites, his immaturity off the hardwood can undercut a team's sincerity.

Harden was ripped harder post-McHale. Shoot first, defense last. Difficult to play with for everyone else in red. Harder than ever to believe in as a contender's No. 1 choice.

"Turn my focus level up a little bit more on both ends of the floor and just be a better leader out there," said Harden, describing his renewed intensity, after acknowledging that Bickerstaff had requested more out of him than the Rockets had previously received.

Alexander still hasn't seen the worth of what he has paid so much for.

No ring to it

Morey brilliantly brought the duo together, pulling off two of the biggest deals the NBA has seen since The Decision.

Because 14 games into the third year of their on-again, off-again relationship, Harden and Howard are just a more disappointing version of another high-profile Houston couple that never worked out: Yao and McGrady.

Brian T. Smith is a sports columnist for the Houston Chronicle. He has won multiple Associated Press Sports Editors awards and been honored by numerous journalism organizations. Smith was a Houston Texans beat writer for the Chronicle from 2013-15 and an Astros beat writer from 2012-13. The New Orleans-area native previously covered the NBA's Utah Jazz (The Salt Lake Tribune) and Portland Trail Blazers (The Columbian), among other beats. He is the author of the book Liftoff, which documented the Astros' rebuild and 2017 World Series championship.